Girls Link
My Age aims to Advocate for the provision of mobile family planning clinics in internally displaced farming areas in Masvingo, Zimbabwe,
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What specific problem(s) are you trying to address?
Zimbabwe is affected by many SRHR challenges among which are High HIV prevalence and unmet needs of Family planning among adolescent girls and young women. 120 births per 1,000 women aged 15-29. The teenage pregnancy prevalence is at 31,5% rendering it the third highest in Mashonaland province(2012 Census).This has resulted in many young girls dropping out of school and left to be married or fall pregnant as a way to alleviate poverty. Therefore it is with this background that the project targets adolescent girls and young women in humanitarian or undeserving settings which include farming communities, internally displaced communities, mining areas, who are usually neglected in terms of reach and access to SRHR services.What are some of your unanswered questions about the problem(s) you are working to address?
Community based distributors and Village Health Workers mobilise community and distribute short term contraceptives such as Oral Contraceptive Pills and youth friendliness of all these service providers is not adequate. Therefore this has caused a rise in teenage pregnancies, High HIV prevalence among young women, child marriages as well as STSI's because there is no access to SRH, HIV information and services including contraceptives.Explain Your Idea
Therefore it is with this background that the project targets adolescent girls and young women in humanitarian or undeserving settings which include farming communities, internally displaced communities, mining areas, who are usually neglected in terms of reach and access to SRHR services. The project will increased coverage of undeserved/humanitarian areas by advocating for mobile FP clinics for Long acting methods and use of community based youth distributors. Activities will be undertaken to increase knowledge and utilization of available family planning services by 10 000 adolescent girls and young women in undeserved/humanitarian settings. The project will empower and build the capacity of 100 adolescent girls and young women to be advocacy champions of family planning at a community, national and regional level as well as accelerate the inclusion of marginalized adolescent girls those in humanitarian settings and in child marriages as champions and advocates for family planning. Community Performances targeting the broader community at large will be done: After the performances Post Performance discussions will be conducted. Discussions will center on issues of Family Planning/Contraceptive use amongst adolescent girls and young women to demystify contraception use. The trained champions will be able to distribute contraceptives to adolescent girls and young women and the advocacy messages during mobile clinics is "no adolescent should be turned away".Name the three most important ways that your idea will address your identified problem(s).
1. Girls Choose Smart Contraception: Training of 100 adolescent girls and young women as Advocates and Champions of FP – this is essential for the success of the project, they will be advocates, responsible for information dissemination and distribution of contraceptives in communities. Adolescent girls and young women to be trained will be from the humanitarian communities identified by stakeholders and the communities as well. 2. High Level Advocacy Dialogues with policy makers at a district and provincial level: The young advocates trained will plan and strategise on key advocacy issues including provision of mobile FP clinics. hold leaders accountable to FP2020 3. Conduct monitoring and evaluation meetings availing M and E tools.How is your idea unique?
The Girls Choose Smart Contraception project is innovative because underlying the successes of the advocacy project is the empowerment of adolescent girls and young women to be advocates, distributers of FP services and commodities at a community level. Adolescents and young women involved in advocacy processes act as influencers to the decision makers who include FP service and commodity providers. The project will use various innovative strategies to reach to policy makers, communities, FP service providers, FP commodities providers these strategies include digital confessions, documentation of human interest stories and use of theatre for development that is dramas/plays.What are some outstanding concerns or questions that you have regarding your idea?
The age of consent to sex in Zimbabwe is pegged at 16, the age of marriage at 18. What keeps me up is how can these be harmonised to accommodate adolescent girls that are becoming pregnant at 12 years or earlier.Who are your end users?
The project will directly benefit 1000 adolescent girls and young women between the ages of 10- 24 years in humanitarian displaced settlements in Chiredzi farming areas and Chingwizi settlement for floods displaced communities. These will benefit from information on SRHR, HIV and AIDS with focus to access to contraceptives including access to services and commodities. The intervention will reach 3000 girls and young women through a multiplier effect that each person comes from an average family of 3-5 as well has 2-4 friends and if each girl reached can reach to 3 members within their circle, this number can be a reality.Where will your idea be implemented?
- Zimbabwe
What is the primary type of emergency setting where your innovation would operate?
- Community at risk of disaster
Tell us more about the emergency setting that you intend to implement in
The project targets adolescent girls and young women in humanitarian or undeserving settings which include farming communities of Chiredzi, Masvingo in Zimbabwe, internally displaced communities in Chingwizi Area in Masvingo, mining areas of Mashava, Masvingo, who are usually neglected in terms of reach and access to SRHR services.What is your organization's name?
My Age Zimbabwe TrustTell us more about you.
Organizational Characteristics
- Youth-led organization
What is the current scale of your proposed innovation?
- Community - 1+ communities within 1 country
Experience in Implementation Country(ies)
- Yes, for more than one year.
Expertise in Sector
- Yes, for more than a year.
Organization Location
My Age Zimbabwe Trust is a registered Youth Organisation under the Trust Deeds, the organisation operates in Masvingo, Zimbabwe.What is your organizational status?
- Registered non-profit, charity, NGO, or community-based organization.
What is the maturity of your innovation?
- Roll-out/Ready to Scale: Completed a pilot and am ready / in process of expanding.
Website
www.myage-zim.orgWritten by
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